Related Media

Gents, let’s say your significant other and your beloved offspring are starvin’ like Marvin’, and it’s your turn to cook.

Chef Daniel Joly is your guy. Especially if someone in the family has a gluten allergy or intolerance.

His new cookbook, “Gluten Free Food for the Soul,” is an ebook containing 29 gluten free recipes with short video with instructions so clear that even a man can follow them. There are videos for recipes ranging from apple crumble and chocolate tort, to mac and cheese and sweet potato gnocchi, all of which are gluten free.

And let’s face it, women dig it when guys cook. Even if it’s Joly’s gluten-free chicken fingers, which, by the way, are wonderful and wonderfully uncomplicated.

“Customers are always calling for recipes,” Joly said.

He said guys tend to call in a blind panic, begging for help and blubbering, “I have a date tonight and need your recipe for creme brulee!”

Now, he can calmly send them to the website, chefjoly.comtarget="_blank">chefjoly.com. They can watch the video and at least act like they know what they’re doing. And who knows? If they act like that often enough, maybe someday they might actually know what they’re doing.

‘To help people’

The book contains 29 recipes with a three or four minute video for each one, demonstrating how to make kid-friendly meals.

“The cookbook is fun, it’s different and so many people are affected by gluten,” Joly said. “The intention is to help people.”

Joly has plenty to do: He’s the executive chef and owner of Mirabelle’s; a touring celebrity chef, doing events on cooking with beer; and the father of two strapping lads.

Mark Duckett, Joly’s partner in this ebook project, is also busy. But they decided to carve out some time and put together a package of gluten-free recipes aimed at kids.

Amazon claims to be crying for content and Joly happened to have material ready to go, Duckett said. As far as they know, this is the first ebook with embedded videos.

“The multimedia just made sense,” Duckett said.

Joly authored a cookbook of Mirabelle cuisine and a how-to-cook-with-beer book that pairs beer with food.

“You can do a cooking show, but the reach is limited,” Duckett said. “This has the potential to reach the world.”

Joly is originally from Belgium. His long-time friend and sous chef, Tony Mazza, appears on the videos.

They shot all 29 videos in a day and a half, but they spent a month and a half in the Mirabelle kitchen perfecting recipes, making sure anyone could prepare them.

“We wanted to keep them simple so when people see it they’ll say, ‘I can do that!’” Joly said.

Gluten is the protein found in some grains. It is present in all forms of wheat, as well as in barley, rye and triticale, a wheat-rye cross. Gluten can also turn up in certain brands of chocolate, imitation crab (surimi), deli meats, soy sauce, vitamins and even some kinds of toothpaste. It’s reputed to be a culprit in gastro-intolerance, and some even suspect it of contributing to arthritis and cancer. An increasing number of people are choosing to go gluten free.

Place gluten free bread crumbs, potato starch flour and eggs in three separate large bowls. Whisk the eggs with a little water. Add salt and pepper to the potato starch flour, mix well.

Begin breading the chicken by coating the chicken in potato starch flour, then in the egg, and then in the bread crumbs. Shake off excess bread crumbs, place on a plate and set aside. Repeat with all the chicken strips.

Once the oil is heated, begin frying in batches. Be careful not to crowd the pan. Fry until golden brown on both sides.